


I'll Be Around For You

by IndigoNight



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Bucky is a great uncle he just doesn't know it yet, Deaf Clint Barton, Family Feels, Kidfic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-19 09:35:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29748546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IndigoNight/pseuds/IndigoNight
Summary: Bucky can’t breathe. He reaches out and grabs Clint’s shoulder, fingers digging in almost tight enough to bruise; as though he’s entirely lost control of his body, he catches himself shaking Clint. “I cannot lose Steve’s kid!” he says, only dimly aware that he’s shouting.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Clint Barton, Steve Rogers/Sam Wilson
Comments: 9
Kudos: 79
Collections: BBB Special Events





	I'll Be Around For You

**Author's Note:**

> Written as a fill for the [Bucky Barnes Bingo](https://buckybarnesbingo.tumblr.com) Flash Bingo picture prompt square. I didn't really want to write about Bucharest, so after some discord discussion, I decided that this could definitely be the face of someone about to realize that they've lost track of a kid... and then this happened.  
> 

Bucky has been told that he used to be great with kids; he’s pretty sure that Steve is a filthy liar. 

It’s not that he doesn’t like kids, it’s just that he always ends up feeling so clumsy and awkward around them that he doesn’t know what to do with himself. They tend to be so blunt and honest too. Bucky, used to being around spies and emotionally constipated superheroes, doesn’t know what to do with that. And he’s never sure if they’ll be uncomfortably fascinated with his metal arm, or afraid of it. 

So when Sam and Steve brought home a little girl… well, it’s not a  _ good _ excuse for the way Bucky had spent months mostly avoiding them, but it’s the only one he’s got. He’d known they were talking about adopting, ever since Steve had retired and passed the shield over to Bucky. But it felt like they went from a hypothetical to filling their apartment with stuffed animals and kindergarten brochures awfully fast. 

In his defense, it wasn’t entirely on purpose - he isn’t that shitty of a friend - it was just an unfortunate coincidence that a new HYDRA cell kept him running himself ragged all over Europe for the first few months after Sam and Steve brought little Nadia home. Although, he supposes he hadn’t  _ really _ needed to go help Rhodey with that thing in Belize. And Maria with her SHIELD team probably could have managed the minor lizardfolk invasion in Chicago just fine without him. He’d still made sure to ask how the kid was doing every time he talked to Steve, and sent appropriately complimentary responses to the four thousand seven hundred and fifty-two pictures and videos sent to him by a combination of practically everyone he knows.

He just… doesn’t really know what to do when he’s actually in the same room as the kid. 

* * *

Unfortunately, Clint has absolutely no patience for Bucky’s perfectly logical plan of easing into his uncleship in a setting where there are plenty of other adults around to keep the kid occupied. 

“We’re babysitting Nadia tomorrow,” Clint says, his voice drifting out through the open bathroom doorway.

Bucky, who’d been half dozing, sprawled out comfortably in their bed, immediately jerks wide awake. “Uh… when did  _ we _ decide that?” he asks, eyes narrowing in Clint’s general direction even though he can’t see it.

“I set it up with Sam and Steve a couple days ago,” Clint answers blithely, emerging with his damp hair sticking up wildly in all directions and a fleck of toothpaste stuck to his chin. “There’s some kind of farmer’s market street fair thing in Williamsburg that we’re taking her to.” 

To the surprise of absolutely no one who actually knew him, Clint actually is excellent with kids and had immediately jumped on the opportunity to start building his role as the World’s Best Uncle pretty much as soon as Steve and Sam brought Nadia home. If Bucky didn’t love Clint so much, he’d kind of hate him. Instead, he scowls at the ceiling. “I can’t, I’m busy,” he says shortly.

“No, you’re not.” Clint crawls up onto the bed and climbs over Bucky instead of walking around to get in on his own side, because sometimes Clint just likes to be obnoxious. He flops down purposefully half on top of Bucky, elbowing Bucky in the spleen in a way that is probably intentional. “We’ll stuff her full of like organic funnel cake and artisanal matcha chai ice cream or whatever then give her back. It’ll be great.” 

No matter how grumpy he’s feeling, Bucky doesn’t have the heart to completely shove Clint off of him, so instead he just shifts enough to get all of Clint’s pointiest parts away from his softest parts. Once he’s satisfied that they’re both comfortable he slings his arm around Clint’s waist and tucks the sheet up over them. The silence hangs for a moment. Bucky sort of wants to just go to sleep and let the conversation end, but instead he says, “you said you aren’t mad at me for not being around much the past couple of months.” 

“I’m not,” Clint says, nuzzling his face sleepily into Bucky’s shoulder.

It’s been almost three weeks since Clint, Natasha, and - surprisingly - Tony, had cornered him to knock some sense into him. And since they really didn’t give him much choice, he’d given in. No one else had questioned his excuses for taking so many prolonged missions away, but he doubts that means they actually believe him, and a small, guilty part of him is still waiting for Steve to unleash the sad puppy eyes on him. But as he considers Clint draped all over him, looking drowsy and innocent, he starts to wonder if there’s some sort of conspiracy against him going on. “So this isn’t about some sort of weird revenge plot?” he asks cautiously.

Clint lifts his head and blinks at him. “Would I do that?”

“Yes,” Bucky’s answer is immediate and instinctive and it makes Clint grin a little.

“Well, it’s not. It’s about the fact that parenting is hard, so Sam and Steve deserve a morning off.” He leans in, pressing a slow kiss to Bucky’s lips, before leaning over him to deposit his hearing aids on the bedside table and turn off the lamp. “And also because you need to stop hiding from a goddamn five year old,” he adds, sounding distinctly smug, presumably because he’s effectively cut off Bucky’s ability to retort. 

Someday, Bucky is going to stop letting him win arguments that way.

* * *

Which is how he’s ended up spending his Saturday morning at a crowded farmer’s market.

Apparently hanging out with kids means waking up obnoxiously early, and Bucky very much does not appreciate it. Inexplicably Clint, who usually drags himself out of bed and guzzles at least a full pot of coffee before he even opens his eyes, is frustratingly excited and perky as he shoves Bucky out of bed, continuing to prod and cajole him all the way to Williamsburg.

Bucky’s grateful, at least, that Nadia already adores Clint, and is apparently perfectly happy to hang all over the archer, chattering away at him while almost entirely ignoring Bucky. And as much as Bucky is still pretty sure this is a conspiracy against him, Sam had actually looked tired and just a little bit relieved when he’d waved goodbye to them; it’s not that Bucky feels guilty, but it does wick away just a little bit of his grumpiness.

The street market turns out to be just busy and crowded as Bucky had suspected. He slouches after Clint and the cheerfully bouncing five year old, self consciously pulling the brim of his hat a little lower over his face. He’s glad that at least it’s late enough in the year for there to be just a touch of autumn cooling the air so that his thick canvas jacket and gloves don’t stand out too much; as long as he keeps his metal arm hidden he’s not as immediately recognizable as some of the other Avengers, but he’d still rather not risk it. Especially since there are still people who look at him and only see the international terrorist known as the Winter Soldier.

Bucky will never admit it, but wandering around the market is kind of fun. An almost overwhelming mix of fragrant scents fill the air, floating up from displays of just about every kind of food imaginable. Stalls full of brilliantly colored flowers punctuate the displays, and tables laden with a variety of handicrafts are interspersed throughout. At one point, Bucky finds himself so engrossed in examining a selection of artisanal cheeses that he almost doesn’t notice when Clint says, “Stay here. I’ll be right back.” He just nods absently, contemplating a wheel of brie.

It takes roughly eighty-two seconds for him to pause and look up, fully processing the fact that Clint isn’t within eyesight. And neither is Nadia.

A thrill of panic races through him and he whirls around, scanning the crowd frantically. He opens his mouth to call her name but finds that his throat has closed over. No matter how hard he looks, he finds no sign of her curly pigtails or the purple overalls she’s wearing.

His chest feels tight and there’s a buzzing in his ears. He knew that he would fuck this up somehow, but he didn’t expect it to be like this.

Just as he’s about to spiral completely out of control, he catches sight of Clint making his way back toward him. Alone. “She’s not with you,” he blurts as soon as Clint’s close enough to hear him. He’d known that, but a part of him had still held onto the fragile hope that somehow she would be.

Clint blinks, his gaze lowering to where Nadia’s head should be. “No,” he says slowly, his eyebrows drawing together into a frown as his eyes move in a sharp sweep around them. “Nadia?” he calls.

Bucky can’t breathe. He reaches out and grabs Clint’s shoulder, fingers digging in almost tight enough to bruise; as though he’s entirely lost control of his body, he catches himself shaking Clint. “I cannot lose Steve’s kid!” he says, only dimly aware that he’s shouting.

Clint’s lips purse together, one eyebrow raising. “That does sound bad,” he agrees slowly.

“We have to find her,” he insists.

“We will,” Clint answers, his voice lowering as though in intentional contrast to Bucky’s panic. He gently dislodges Bucky’s hand and reaches out to grip both of Bucky’s shoulders instead, bracing and grounding him. “Breathe. She can’t have gone far.”

Instinctively Bucky sucks in a breath and his mind clears a little, though adrenaline is still rushing through him. He nods, letting the breath back out in a gust. “Search grid,” he says, starting to settle into that sharp, tactical place he uses for missions.

Clint opens his mouth to respond, but before he gets the words out Bucky just catches a familiar high pitched shout over the din of the crowd around them. His head snaps in that direction and then he takes off running, boots pounding over the pavement and heedless of the people he shoves past. “Hey wait!” Clint yells, a few seconds behind but running quickly in Bucky’s wake.

Bucky doesn’t slow down, he can’t, but they don’t have far to go. He skids around a corner and his knees almost go out from under him in relief as he spots what he’s looking for.

In a pseudo alley created by a couple of unused stalls, Nadia is standing with her legs planted wide and her tiny hands curled into fists. “Take it back!” she yells, voice pitched even higher than usual with righteous fury.

Standing in front of her is a sneering boy who is at least twice her size.

For a second the world tilts around Bucky and he’s back in 1923. Of fucking course. “Nadia!” he snaps, storming over to her. Without even thinking about it he drops to one knee and reaches out to pull her closer, as though she might disappear again. “What the hell are you doing?”

“He called my daddy a dirty word!” she yells angrily, jabbing an accusatory finger toward where the bigger boy had been; wisely, the other kid had run off as soon as Bucky approached. “I’m gonna kick his ass.”

Bucky pauses, momentarily derailed as he glances around wondering if he can tell which way the other kid had gone. “Which one?” he asks. Behind him, he hears Clint double over giggling. “Nevermind, don’t answer that,” he adds quickly, shaking his head. “Are you hurt?” He catches himself running his hands over her arms instinctively, checking her for injuries out of long habit. 

“No,” she says, lower lip starting to stick out petulantly. 

Bucky’s head drops, the adrenaline finally starting to drain out of him, but he doesn’t let her go. “Christ, she really is their kid,” he mutters to himself. 

“Hey, curlicue,” Clint says, having recovered himself and stepping up beside Bucky to tap Nadia on the head. “What’s the rule about wandering off?”

She tilts her head up to scowl at Clint, but mumbles, “don’t.” A beat later she adds, “I didn’t mean to.”

“Uh-huh.” Bucky can hear Clint’s raised eyebrow in his unconvinced tone. 

“I’m putting her on a leash,” Bucky informs him, finally catching his breath and pushing himself to his feet. 

“Good luck,” Clint snorts. He looks back down at Nadia, who has mischief visibly brewing in her eyes. After a moment of consideration he bends down and scoops her up. “Here,” he says, which is the only warning Bucky gets before Clint deposits the little girl on his shoulders.

Nadia lets out a grunt but lets her legs dangle down Bucky’s chest on either side of his neck and wraps her arms around his forehead to steady herself. 

“We need ice cream,” Clint declares, utterly unphased by Bucky’s stare. He bends down and picks up the two tote bags of things they’d purchased that he’d been carrying and settles them comfortably on his arm. 

“Ice cream! Ice cream!” Nadia cheers, her heels drumming excitedly against Bucky’s chest. 

“Hey, cut that out,” Bucky complains, even though he doesn’t really mind, and he wraps his hands around her ankles more to make sure she doesn’t fall off than to still her movements. 

Clint gives Bucky a sunny grin and wraps his free arm around him. “Let’s go see what the weirdest, most hipster flavor we can find is,” he challenges, steering them back toward the crowd. 

* * *

“Take you demon spawn,” Bucky says, depositing Nadia into Steve’s arms as soon as he opens the door. “I’m too old for this shit.”

Nadia giggles, tucking her face into the crook of Steve’s neck and wrapping her arm around him. Steve raises an eyebrow at Bucky. “Did you guys have a fun day?” he asks, rubbing Nadia’s back as he leads them all inside. 

“Uh-huh,” she says, lifting her head back up. “I tried mashed potato ice cream.” She has a rainbow heart painted on her cheek - which is now a little smudged with a matching smear on the collar of Steve’s shirt - and is clutching a miniature pumpkin that she’d suckered Bucky into buying for her. She holds up the pumpkin, thrusting it into Steve’s face, “this is Frank.”

Steve blinks. “Hello Frank,” he says obligingly, and Bucky can’t help a grin - damn but she’s somehow got Steve well trained already. 

“We brought you a pie,” Clint adds helpfully, heading for the kitchen. He pulls the pie, along with a few other things they’d gotten for Sam and Steve, out of his tote bag and starts loading them into the fridge. 

“Ooh, what kind?” Sam asks, emerging from the bedroom. Both he and Steve are looking distinctly rumpled and freshly showered in a way that Bucky would definitely tease them about if there wasn’t a kid in the room; but they’re also smiling and more relaxed than they had been that morning.

Nadia wiggles in Steve’s arms, reaching for Sam, and Steve sets her down so that she can run to him. Sam lifts her up to sit on the edge of the counter and she immediately engages both him and Clint in a very serious conversation about Frank the pumpkin.

“Hey,” Steve says quietly, pulling Bucky aside. “Thank you.”

Steve’s eyes are soft and sincere in a way that makes Bucky’s chest tight. He can’t quite meet Steve’s eyes and has to force a half hearted shrug. “Blame Clint,” he deflects, “it was all his idea.”

“You know that’s not what I’m talking about,” Steve persists, refusing to be derailed. He reaches out and clasps Bucky’s shoulder, squeezing firmly. “I know you’re trying, and I really appreciate it.” Bucky swallows but just nods and Steve grins, pulling him into a side hug.

They spend another half hour hanging out and chatting before it’s time for Bucky and Clint to head home. 

“See you later, pipsqueak,” Clint says, scooping Nadia up into a hug which she returns cheerfully. But when Clint goes to set her back down, she leans over his shoulder with her tiny hands outstretched.

It takes Bucky entirely too long to realize that she’s reaching for him. He catches her instinctively when Clint deposits her into his arms and isn’t entirely sure what to do when she throws her skinny arms around his neck in a tight hug. Then she plants a loud, smacking kiss on his cheek.

All three of the other adults are smirking at them and looking entirely too smug.


End file.
